The 2015 Rosé Millésimé is a blend of 63% Pinot Noir and 37% Chardonnay, all from 1er Cru and Grand Cru vineyards. Ten percent of still red wine is included in the blend. It spent at least 8 years on lees and has 3 g/L of dosage. Pale salmon pink colored, wild strawberries, lavender, and lime leaf scents slowly emerge from the glass, with suggestions of white pepper and turmeric. The palate is light on its feet and refreshing with fascinating savory flavors and a fine-boned finish.

The 2022 Pinot Noir The Sum was matured for 17 months in 48% new French oak. It has inviting scents of bramble fruit, incense, lavender, mossy bark and bitters. The medium-bodied palate is dynamic and spicy with fine, chalky tannins, vibrant acidity and a long, layered finish. 987 cases were made.

The 2022 Chardonnay Desiderium matured for 17 months in 60% new French oak, plus an additional six months in stainless steel. Pure wafts of matchstick and crème brûlée give way to panna cotta, stone fruit and jasmine. The medium-bodied palate has a silky texture and combines power and energy. Its concentrated, spicy flavors are balanced by vibrant acidity, and it has a long, dynamic finish. It should be long lived in the cellar. 458 cases were made.

Matured for 17 months in 65% new French oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Conifer has layered scents of bramble fruit, bitters, mossy bark and damp earth. The full-bodied palate is powerfully styled with concentrated, savory flavors. It’s structured by fine-grained tannins and refreshing acidity and has a long, spicy finish. 629 cases were made.

The 2022 Pinot Noir Zena Crown Vineyard has nuanced aromas of raspberry, red cherry, bitters, mossy bark and mushrooms. Medium-bodied, it floods the mouth with crunchy, earth-laced flavors. It’s framed by fine, chalky tannins and vibrant acidity and has a long, spicy finish.

Matured for 10 months in 33% new French oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Knudsen Vineyard has nuanced aromas of red cherry, raspberry, mixed tea leaves, peppercorn and wildflowers. The medium-bodied palate is bursting with concentrated, spicy flavors. It’s framed by fine, chalky tannins and vibrant acidity and has a long, layered finish. 228 cases were made.

Matured for 10 months in 33% new French oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Ridgecrest Vineyard has intense aromas of dried cherry and cranberry, tea leaves, lilac, graphite and spicy undertones. The medium-bodied palate offers concentrated, nuanced flavors and well-integrated oak spice. It’s structured by powdery tannins and juicy acidity and has a long, layered finish. 276 cases were made.

The 2022 Pinot Noir Dropstone was matured for nine months in 30% new oak. It has slowly unfurling scents of blackberry, lavender, fennel, mushroom powder, damp earth and iron. The full-bodied palate is powerfully styled with highly concentrated yet nuanced flavors. It’s structured by muscular, grainy tannins and refreshing acidity and has a long, mineral-laced finish. It will benefit from 3-5 years in the cellar. 241 cases were made.

The 2022 Chardonnay Upland was matured for 20 months in used French oak. It has savory aromas of bruised apples, cheese rind, nori and saline. The medium-bodied palate is satiny and expansive with highly concentrated, mouth-coating flavors. It’s balanced by juicy acidity and has a long, savory finish. It’s unusual yet compelling. 154 cases were made.

Matured for 10 months in 50% new oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Cascade has layered scents of red cherry, cranberry, conifer, forest floor and nori. The medium-bodied palate features concentrated flavors, velvety tannins, fresh acidity and a long, latent finish. It will benefit from 2-3 years in the cellar. 210 cases were made.

The 2022 Pinot Noir Telluric is a new wine sourced from a single block within the Gran Moraine Vineyard. It has intense aromas of pomegranate, raspberry preserves, Earl Grey tea leaves, forest floor and nori. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly styled with mineral-laced flavors and silky tannins. It’s balanced by vibrant acidity and has a long, fragrant finish. 154 cases were made.

Vivacious & fresh 2023 mostly Fijnbosch plus some Stellenbosch fruit. Kiwi, greengage & citrus, creamy lees & toast from intricate vinification in array of vessels: oak barrel, 30% new, foudre & ceramic pot. Linear, balanced & elegant, even more potential than 2022

As classically styled as 2021 & most expressive of the chardonnay trio in riper 2022, courtesy staggered harvest of 5 Western Cape sites. Ferment completed/10 months in 38% new barrique add toasty hazelnut to stonefruit, ripe pear & lemongrass, bright acid ensures fresh balance. Not as intense as previous but as enthralling & ageworthy.

Ripe red fruit, leather, pine bark and dried herbs on the nose. A silky palate with juicy acidity and seamless tannins. Very fresh and mouth-filling, with abundant cherry and raspberry flavors. A pleasing bitter floral component in the finish. Medium-bodied. Drink or hold.

Aromas of cranberry, pomegranate, and roses swirl on the nose of this wine. These give way to earthier flavors of sage, roasted shiitake, and black tea mingling with Bing cherries on the palate before a long, energetic, and floral finish.

A pretty, aromatic, light- to medium-bodied wine with aromas of bright red fruit, dried flowers, cranberries, orange zest and delicate spices. A juicy core of acidity carries pure raspberry and strawberry flavors with a subtle earthiness at the end. Very inviting. Drink or hold.

A perfumed mix of flowers and slate with some tropical fruit character and bright red berries. The palate is succulent and mouthwatering, showing flavors of cherries and red plums. This medium- to full-bodied wine has good bones and will age well. Drink or hold.

In this instance the time on the lees was six years; the blend is 53% Pinot Noir, 41% Chardonnay and 6% Pinot Meunier. The extra time puts an emphasis on the yeasty aromas, adds texture to the mouthfeel, and leaves a biscuity note on the palate. All good. Here again I’m using the Josephine sparkling wine glass, and it’s a winner, bringing out more detail and creating an impression of elegance.

One of the more lively expressions of Chardonnay from Brewer-Clifton, the 2023 Chardonnay Hapgood opens with a beautifully detailed bouquet of citrus and floral notes with fennel and minty undertones. The palate is silken, rich and focused, deftly combining the contained decadence of the house with a mirror-like sheen and lifted energy. It concludes with a clean, linear and transparent finish, padded with a pleasant touch of textural richness.

The 2023 Chardonnay Machado offers up the most distinctly floral and exuberant bouquet of the Brewer-Clifton roster, striking a balance between a pretty, perfumed and herbal nose and a broad, lush backdrop of golden orchard fruits. Similarly, the palate balances a vertical, elastic energy with a horizontal staying power, retaining sleek energy through the soaring, chalky finish. With time in the glass, this mellows out a bit, but it remains one of the more alluring and multifaceted of the Brewer-Clifton Chardonnays.

Issuing from hillside plantings, the 2023 Pinot Noir Perilune is one of the more focused and tensile expressions of Pinot Noir in the roster. It opens with a slightly less high-toned bouquet than its counterparts, wafting from the glass with aromas of dried citrus, underbrush and turned earth, rendered in high fidelity. The palate is supple and suave, seamlessly oscillating between a deep textural power and a taut, focused vibrancy. The latter defines the finish, which lingers with a genteel, finessed intensity framed by fine-grained, structural tannins. This will benefit from a bit more time in bottle to soften, and it should drink very well through its 10th birthday.

The 2023 Syrah Perilune is quite impressive, opening with a strikingly peppery, savory bouquet set against a core of black and blue fruits, with floral tones emerging after time in the glass. As with much of the Brewer-Clifton lineup, it is simultaneously soft, silky, tense and vibrant, concluding with a taut, incredibly well-defined finish that lingers with chalky, refined tannins. Even with the crystal clarity on display here, a wild side lingers in the background, making for a compelling and cleansing expression of Sta. Rita Hill Syrah that should evolve beautifully.

Matured for 14 months in 40% new French oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Kiana has alluring aromas of blueberry, rhubarb, tangerine peel, lilac, damp earth and mushrooms. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly styled with detailed, crunchy flavors and silky tannins. It’s balanced by mouthwatering acidity and has a long, fragrant finish. 418 cases were made.

Matured for 15 months in 50% new French oak, the 2022 Pinot Noir Triple Black Slopes is scented of blueberry, blackberry, black tea leaves, garrigue, damp earth and mushrooms. Medium-bodied, it floods the mouth with concentrated, floral red fruit flavors. It’s framed by muscular, grainy tannins and vibrant acidity and has a long finish. 439 cases were made.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Kiana is scented of blueberry, blood orange, black tea leaves, violet and damp earth. Medium-bodied, it floods the mouth with juicy, floral flavors, and its oak spice is effortlessly integrated. It’s framed by silky tannins and has a long, nuanced finish. 383 cases were made.